Edible, medicinal, and native plants for the Pacific Northwest

We've spent 13 years building an abundant fruit forest, annual veggie beds, perennial medicinal herbs, and a healthy mixed hardwood-coniferous forest and now it's time to sell our property so that we can begin a new homesteading project closer to our best friends and their kids.

Hedgerows

These plants handle sun, poor soil, little care, and generally grow well in hedgerows here in the Eugene / Springfield / Creswell / Cottage Grove area of the southern Willamette Valley. They would also do well further north in the valley in areas such as Coburg, Junction City, Harrisburg, Brownsville, Halsey, Corvallis, and northwards to Salem and Portland.

Pixwell is almost thornless. Berries can be harvested when green for pie and jam or harvested when soft and pink for fresh eating. Very productive and fruit is easy to harvest clusters. Mildew... more->

A multi-functional tree native to Europe, linden has edible leaves and flowers. Bees adore the blooms which make a great tea, and from bees, a delicious honey. The wood is also known as basswood... more->

Rugosa rose is a suckering shrub native to asia. It has large and beautiful blooms and the largest rose hips of any rose we know. The rose hips are high in vitamin C and can be eaten fresh or... more->

Waldo is a purple gooseberry originally brought to us by Rick Valley, a wise local Permaculture landscaper. It was the result of hybridizations from Dr. George Waldo. It has sweet purple fruits... more->

'Blackdown' produces large, jet-black berries that are juicy and flavorful with a distinctive musky taste. They are excellent in jams, jellies and juice. The plant is vigorous and has upright... more->

Red currants produce bright red clusters of fruit which are are striking in the garden and they enhance any dish to which they are added. Red currant fruit is high in vitamin C and potassium and... more->

'Hinnomaki Gold' also known as 'Hinnomaki Yellow" is a very hardy variety, and bushes produce a heavy crop of medium sized, greenish yellow fruits. Some say this variety has a delicious aromatic... more->

White currants are the sweetest of the European currants and White Imperial has great flavor. Almost all currant lovers that we talk to choose white currants for sweet flavor. These shrubs are... more->

European black currants have a very distinct musky flavor which is prized by many in Europe and the U.S. We love these fruit and make a honey and currant jam that our toddler eats by the spoonful... more->

This currant has smooth, lobed leaves and berries that have spicy and gingery tones that ride on top of the sweet and sour currant flavor. It's yellow flowers brighten the garden in late spring... more->

This native member of the sunflower family spreads quickly in poor soil with very little care and without summer irrigation. It has spreading blue-flowered aster blossoms late in the summer to... more->

This is one of the earliest blooming and showiest shrubs in the Pacific Northwest! Red flowering currant is a very popular plant for a variety of reasons. The large clusters of pink-red flowers... more->

Saltbush is a wonderful choice for year-round edible raw greens. This shrub is semi-evergreen and will provide mildly salty spinach flavored leaves throughout the year. Some cold years, it can... more->

'Invicta' produces high yields of large dessert quality green fruit, and is considered by many to be the best variety in North America. It has excellent flavor, is mildew resistant, and is more... more->

Coyote brush is an evergreen shrub native to Oregon. It is drought tolerant, deer tolerant, and easy to grow. Fast growing, it can grow as high as nine feet but usually is shorter. It responds... more->

Jostaberry is a cross between european currants and gooseberries, taking the best from both. It is a thornless shrub producing dark fruits with a mild black currant flavor. The fruit is larger... more->

Tall Oregon grape is a woody perennial shrub in the barberry family that is tough enough to survive in many conditions and yet provides edible and medicinal yields. It grows 2-7 feet tall in well... more->

Blue blossom, also known as California lilac, is a fabulous showy broadleaf evergreen shrub. Lilac colored flowers bloom in mid to late spring and have a wonderful fragrance. Native to coastal... more->

Clustered wild rose is native to the Willamette Valley and other parts of the Pacific Northwest. It is a spreading woody shrub, growing up to 6 feet tall. It is a great and easy to grow wildlife... more->

Goumi plants are well known in the Northwest permaculture community for being great nitrogen fixing shrubs with a much lower chance for spreading by birds. These shrubs can grow up to 12 feet or... more->

Rugosa rose is a suckering shrub native to Asia. It has large and beautiful blooms and the largest rose hips of any rose we know. The rose hips are high in vitamin C and can be eaten fresh or... more->

A showy evergreen shrub, Jerusalem Sage is an easy to grow plant for a sunny location. Deer tolerant and drought tolerant, it grows quickly but never gets more than a few feet high when blooming... more->

We've spent 13 years building an abundant fruit forest, annual veggie beds, perennial medicinal herbs, and a healthy mixed hardwood-coniferous forest and now it's time to sell our property so that we can begin a new homesteading project closer to our best friends and their kids.